Programme Specifications

Programme summary

1. Programme Aims

• To enable students to gain advanced knowledge and understanding of the key debates, concepts and approaches appropriate to art and the public sphere.
• To provide knowledge to enable integration of art practice, art criticism and curatorial practices through an exploration of the theories, histories and practices associated with the art and the public sphere.
• To introduce ideas of collaborative and collective modes of cultural production and to develop an understanding of art as a hybridised set of practices.
• To enable students to develop a body of work appropriate for postgraduate level and in relation to key debates, concepts and approaches appropriate to art and the public sphere.
• To equip students with the range of critical, practical and transferable skills in order to function as artists, curators and writers.
• To enhance students’ career and employment opportunities on graduating.

2. Relevant subject benchmark statements and other external reference points used to inform programme outcomes:

• Research Council Research Training Guidelines.
• QAA level descriptors for Programmes at M Level.
• Framework for Higher Education Qualifications

3. Programme Learning Outcomes

3.1 Knowledge and Understanding

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to:

• Deploy current theoretical and methodological approaches engaging the major concepts, values and debates in are and the public sphere.
• Interpret the practical and theoretical inter-relationship between art, writing, curation and other relevant disciplines.

3.2 Skills and other attributes

a. Subject-specific cognitive skills:

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to: 

• Use relevant theories, histories and practices to develop new approaches in unfamiliar contexts.
• Analyse personal practice in relation to ideas of collaborative and collective modes of cultural production.
• Evaluate the problems and possibilities created by art, curating, and writing practices to stimulate research.
• Dissect and manipulate complex, incomplete or contradictory data as part of the creative process.

b. Subject-specific practical skills:

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to: 

• Adapt analogue and digital approaches to produce advanced quality outputs.
• Perform autonomously to improve personal practice against sectoral best practice.
• Demonstrate team working and organisational ability to realise goals.
• Consider and incorporate an ethical dimension to practice through negotiation.

c. Key transferable skills:

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to: 

• Reflect on and adapt own actions to connect and improve known and unknown situations.
• Maintain and refine effective visual, verbal and written communication.
• Exploit relevant research literature and other sources of primary and secondary information.

4. Programme structure

The programme consists of the following compulsory modules:

5. Criteria for Progression and Degree Award

5.1. In order to be eligible for the award, candidates must satisfy the requirements of Regulation XXI and additional requirements stated within these regulations.

5.2.  All taught modules provided by the School of the Arts will be assessed on the basis of coursework.

5.3.  A candidate will be permitted to proceed to the Final Project after studying taught modules with a total modular weight of 120.

5.4.  In accordance with the Regulation XXI, candidates who have the right of re-assessment in a module will be offered an opportunity to be re-assessed in a special assessment period.

5.5.  Any student failing to meet the requirements for achieving credit in a module has the automatic right of reassessment on one occasion only. Candidates who have a right of reassessment in a module can opt for reassessment at an earlier date than that of the next routine assessment of the module with the agreement of the programme leader.

6. Relative Weighting of Parts of the Programme for the Purposes of Final Degree Classification